Lee G. Dunst

Lee G. Dunst is a litigation partner in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. Mr. Dunst is a member of Gibson Dunn’s White Collar Defense and Investigations Practice Group. His practice covers a wide range of government investigations and white-collar criminal and regulatory matters, as well as general commercial litigation. His extensive experience includes securities class action cases, accountants’ liability cases, and general business litigation. Mr. Dunst also represents numerous clients, including individuals, companies, accounting firms and special board committees, in connection with criminal and regulatory investigations. Mr. Dunst has a particular focus on matters involving alleged violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”). He has been recognized in TheLegal500US for his work in connection with Gibson Dunn’s White Collar Defense and Investigations practice. The publication has described Mr. Dunst as “knowledgeable and responsive,” and noted that he “provides a broad range of expertise and regularly advises clients accused of corporate fraud and alleged accounting irregularities, as well as FCPA violations.” Mr. Dunst also speaks and writes extensively on white collar criminal issues, as well as matters concerning civil commercial litigation.

He has represented various corporations, accounting firms and individual clients in connection with white-collar criminal investigations by federal and state prosecutors, as well as related civil investigations by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the New York Attorney General’s office, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, the Public Company Accounting Board and various state regulators. His cases have included the representation of senior business executives and corporate entities in connection with criminal and regulatory investigations of various types of alleged corporate fraud and alleged accounting irregularities, as well as alleged violations of the FCPA. He also has conducted numerous internal investigations of alleged misconduct at many United States and international companies and personally has traveled to nearly twenty countries on five continents for these investigations.

Mr. Dunst also has been involved extensively in the successful defense of several securities class action lawsuits filed against major accounting firms and underwriters in federal and state courts in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Maryland. He also has defended members of boards of directors in several litigations relating to their performance of their fiduciary duties as board members.

Prior to joining the Firm, Mr. Dunst served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of New York from 1995 through 2000, and was involved in a series of significant criminal investigations and prosecutions. He led the investigation and prosecution of an international money laundering organization that operated in the United States and Switzerland, resulting in numerous convictions and the imposition of financial penalties of nearly $10 million, which he successfully defended upon appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. In another case, Mr. Dunst received the Director’s Award for Superior Performance from the Department of Justice for the successful prosecution of an insurance fraud scheme that resulted in the payment of $20 million in restitution. During his tenure with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Dunst also served as the Deputy Chief of the Narcotics Section and was widely quoted in the national and international media, including TheNew YorkTimes, TheWashingtonPost, LosAngelesTimes and TheTimesofLondon.

Mr. Dunst has served on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit Pro Bono Panel and had been appointed to represent prose plaintiffs for purposes of several appeals to the Second Circuit. He is a member of the Board of Trustees of Democracy Prep Charter School, which has been ranked as one of the leading public schools in New York City. Mr. Dunst also serves on the Advisory Board of the Mount Sinai Adolescent Health Center, which is the first primary-care program in New York City specifically designed for the health needs of adolescents.

Mr. Dunst graduated magnacumlaude from Brown University in 1986 and cumlaude from New York University School of Law in 1992. Following law school, Mr. Dunst clerked for the Honorable Reena Raggi, then of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York and now on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

Significant FCPA Representations Include:

Major financial institution: Representing a major financial institution in connection with government investigations of possible FCPA issues in connection with its investments in Africa and the Middle East.

Major international company: Involved extensively with the compliance monitorship of a major international company, concerning FCPA issues relating to a deferred prosecution agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice.

Audit Committee of a Fortune 500 company: Conducted an internal investigation on behalf of the Audit Committee of a Fortune 500 company concerning FCPA issues relating to its operations in the Middle East and Asia.

Fortune 500 company: Conducted internal investigations of a Fortune 500 company concerning Foreign Corrupt Practice Act issues relating to its operations in Africa, Mexico, the Middle East and Russia.

Statoil: Worked extensively on the compliance monitorship of Statoil, a major international oil and gas company, concerning FCPA issues relating to a deferred prosecution agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice.

Significant White-Collar Representations

Fortune 250 company: Represented a Fortune 250 company in connection with government investigations and civil litigation regarding its former asset based lending division.

Confidential corporate client: Represented a confidential corporate client in connection with an investigation by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey into alleged sales of commercial products to sanctioned countries.

Audit Committee of a Fortune 50 company: Conducted an internal investigation on behalf of the Audit Committee of a Fortune 50 company concerning senior executive compensation-related issues.

Accounting firm: Represented an accounting firm in connection with a government investigation concerning the China operations of a publicly traded corporation.

Major international reinsurance company: Represented a major international reinsurance company in connection with a state attorney general investigation of alleged civil antitrust violations.

Confidential corporate client: Represented a confidential corporate client in connection with an investigation by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York into issues relating to the subprime meltdown in the real estate market.

Confidential corporate client: Represented a confidential corporate client in connection with an investigation by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York into alleged sales of commercial products to sanctioned countries.

Confidential client: Represented a confidential client in connection with an investigation by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

Confidential corporate client: Conducted an internal investigation on behalf of a confidential corporate client into possible state tax issues in connection with the interstate sale of the company’s products.

Deloitte & Touche Netherlands: Represented Deloitte & Touche Netherlands in connection with various matters arising from the disclosure of improprieties at Royal Ahold, a Dutch company and the world’s third largest supermarket group, including United States securities class action litigation and investigations by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York (class action dismissed and no regulatory actions filed).

Major international reinsurance company: Represented a major international reinsurance company in connection with industry-wide investigations into the use of “finite reinsurance” and related insurance products by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, and numerous state regulators, as well as related private civil litigation (no regulatory actions filed).

Tyco International: Represented Tyco International in connection with the investigation of former management’s improper conduct by the Manhattan District’s Attorney’s Office.

Pharmaceutical products company: Represented the former Chief Executive Officer of a pharmaceutical products company concerning an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission of alleged accounting improprieties (no regulatory action filed).

Special litigation committee: Represented the special litigation committee of the board of directors of a pharmaceutical company concerning an investigation by the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission of alleged accounting improprieties.

Major international shipping company: Conducted an internal investigation at a major international shipping company concerning the activities of a former senior executive who pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges involving his conduct prior to joining the company.

Former member of an internal New York Stock Exchange committee: Represented the former member of an internal New York Stock Exchange committee in connection with the litigation filed by the New York Attorney General’s Office against Richard Grasso, the former head of the New York Stock Exchange.

Significant Civil Litigation Representations Include:

Senior executive of a leading international insurance organization: Representing a senior executive of a leading international insurance organization in connection with pending class action litigation concerning the company’s credit default swap transactions.

Accounting firm: Representing an accounting firm in connection with a securities class action relating to the financial statements issued by a Chinese reverse-merger company.

Canadian-based company: Representing a Canadian-based company in connection with a securities class action relating to public statements regarding its business operations in Africa.

Fortune 100 company: Represented a Fortune 100 company in connection with a securities class action relating to the initial public offering of a Canadian-based company.

Foreign head of state: Represented a foreign head of state in a civil lawsuit in connection with alleged violations of international law.

Fortune 250 company: Represented a Fortune 250 company in connection civil litigation regarding its former asset based lending division.

Underwriters: Represented several underwriters in connection with securities class action litigation arising from the initial public offering of Orion Energy Systems.

Underwriters: Represented several underwriters, including UBS, Royal Bank of Canada and A.G. Edwards, in connection with the securities class action litigation concerning Star Gas, one of the largest home heating oil distributors in the United States (class action dismissed).

Deloitte & Touche Canada: Represented Deloitte & Touche Canada in connection with United States securities class action litigation arising from the disclosure of misconduct at Livent, an international theatrical production company based in Canada.

Nonparty witnesses: Represented nonparty witnesses in Canada and the Netherlands in connection with their depositions in the United States litigation resulting from the disclosure of improprieties at Parmalat.

Significant Pro Bono Representations

Appointed by the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to serve as amicus curiae counsel to defend a district court decision denying a criminal defendant’s motion to seal his sentencing proceedings and then successfully argued for and obtained affirmation of the district court’s decision.

Appointed by the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to represent a prose plaintiff regarding his medical indifference claims against prison officials in the City of New York and then successfully argued for and obtained reversal of the district court’s earlier dismissal of his complaint.